Meet NYCHA’s Employee Safety Oversight Team
The Environmental Health and Safety Department’s Employee Safety Oversight Unit (ESOU) provides guidance to NYCHA staff on how to foster a safe workplace. With a combined 50 years in the employee safety industry as certified professionals, ESOU team members fully understand the importance of safety in the workplace.
The team investigates employee safety complaints, conducts assessments of work location compliance with State safety and health regulations, co-chairs (with the Authorized Employee Representatives) monthly Safety Congress meetings, provides OSHA-mandated safety training to affected personnel, and educates employees on the “Make It Safe” program. As with all environmental health and safety-related concerns, an employee can submit a concern through NYCHA’s website (https://on.nyc.gov/submit-concern).
Safety Congresses
Established in 2014, the monthly Safety Congresses created a forum for location Safety Associates (front-line employees who expressed an interest in supporting employee safety) to meet with NYCHA management, the Authorized Employee Representative, and the Environmental Health and Safety Department to report workplace safety issues and discuss safe solutions to hazards. Currently, there are 135 Safety Associates who serve in this capacity. The ESOU benefits from having a former Safety Associate as a team member: Andre Gonzalez is now an Employee Safety Specialist with the ESOU but was a Caretaker J during his time as a Safety Associate.
Make It Safe
NYCHA’s “Make It Safe” program empowers employees to stop work if an activity or condition is believed to be unsafe. Work will not start again until all issues related to the safety concern are taken care of and agreed to by all affected employees. This program protects all NYCHA staff from any retaliation if any employee exercises the right to stop work. The ESOU provides guidance on how to:
- Stop a task,
- Resolve the concern,
- Communicate the resolution, and
- Ensure compliance.
ESOU Assistant Director Yvonne Armstrong said: “The ‘Make It Safe’ program allows any NYCHA employee who sees or is aware of an unsafe activity to stop work on that activity, immediately report it to his or her supervisor, and have a frank and useful dialogue on how to best, and safely, address the unsafe activity. By engaging in this conversation, it ensures that employees and supervisors work together to ensure all staff members’ safety. The goal is to have a safe work environment.”
Click here more information on the Make It Safe program.
NYCHA’s SAFETY PRINCIPLES
- Employee safety is the primary consideration whenever a task is planned or performed.
- All employees are responsible and accountable for taking the necessary actions to provide a safe workplace.
- All employees are accountable for identifying hazards in the workplace. Employees have the right and responsibility to communicate the nature of hazards and ideas for eliminating such hazards.
- Collaboration with all stakeholders is critical to achieve a safe workplace.
Photo caption: Members of NYCHA’s Employee Safety Oversight Unit Andre Gonzalez (left) and Larry Pucciarelli assess work locations.
